It's not just on paper

Thoughts can be worded in prose or in poetry, in a serious fashion or in a sarcastic style. It's all about what you see and how you express. My blog has a little something to offer in every blog post, of course garnished with salty-sugary layers of creativity.
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Sunday, March 26, 2017

A hometown wedding. This is a
magical statement which raises the adrenaline levels in most Indians by a
hundred folds or so. For me, it surely was exciting to prepare for and attend a
relative’s wedding- shopping, dressing, socializing, making merry and the like.
But the excitement to visit my hometown Surat wasn’t as much as it should
have been.

Reasons could be as under-

1. Surat is geographically so close to
Mumbai that I consider it less of a hometown and more of a backyard

2. Despite this clear advantage, I have visited
Surat less than 5 times for durations less than 10 days (very unlike a typical
Indian hometown vacation)

3. Being a Mumbaikar, I carried the false perception
that if you’re a Mumbai loyalist, you cannot like or appreciate any other
city.

So now, when I did backpack and
set out for this “hometown” wedding, I didn’t quite anticipate just how much was in
store.

Gujarat in a train

All aboard the Gujju Mail

Starting right from the train
that we boarded at Mumbai Central, there was a constant chatter among the
travellers, a chatter much too familiar to any Gujarati in India, a chatter in
Gujarati about Gujaratis going to Gujarat! There was an excitement in the air,
even though most of our co-passengers were regular travelers on the route.

After the departure, a stream of
vendors poured in, and as one would expect, the foods sold like hot tea
(considering we’re talking about Indians here!).

With each approaching station, the Gujarati herd
behaviour became stronger and bolder. The few non-participants, like my parents
and me, gave our implicit nod to this mass behaviour by occasionally chuckling at jokes or smiling upon hearing a funny word.

Surat sunna nu murat

For those of you who don’t
understand Gujarati, the above title means Surat is a land of gold (figuratively). Surat was a thriving, bustling and congested harbour
port and city, before Mumbai beat it to become the biggest metropolis of
western India.

The older parts of Surat resemble
parts of South Central Mumbai, where buildings are right next to each other
sans compounds or front gardens. All building gates open up at the narrow
streets, which are now bearing the weight of not just pedestrians but also two
wheelers and four wheelers. Though, the newly developed areas, where I haven’t yet been,
are said to be quite posh!

Zampa (pronounced as Jhaapa)
Bazaar area in old Surat is a popular neighbourhood among the Bohris. That’s where a Bohri finds
everything a Bohri needs- accommodation, Mosque, Durgah, clothes, accessories
and FOOD!

Since we were attending a family
wedding, arrangements were made for our stay. But my family decided on staying
a bit longer in the community accommodations called Musafirkhana. The beauty of
this Musafirkhana lies in its colour.

Pretense Jodhpur

The Blues!

I was excited about the Musafirkhana since it was styled
like a haveli (and which Gujarati doesn’t fancy a haveli?).

The location of the accommodation is also pretty cool. It
would take an average Mumbaikar 30 seconds to walk from home to the epicentre of zampa market, where one finds groceries, a chemist, fancy laces, ice apple juice
(neera), marinated chicken by the day and tandoori farcha by the night,
delectable faloodas, ice creams and confectioneries and other such trivial
knick knacks.

Flaunting Clothes

Come Wedding and it’s almost like the entire neighbourhood
is packed into the function venue.

Culturally, since we are the jalsa people, everyone is excited to be
a part of the celebration. A stream of ornate men and women enter the hall. Family
members extend their hand in serving food to the guests. The environment is
pretty festive. The men and women are seated separately, so my narration of the
wedding will predominantly be about the goings on in the women’s section of the
venue.

Guests clicked photos of the bride and her intricate
clothes. People chatted with each other like they knew everyone (in most cases,
they DID know everyone). The food was served and everyone whispered their critique
of it in each other’s ears. People hung around for a bit and left, only to
return for the next function in a couple hours.

As a family member, I had to be dressed well and
presentably for the wedding functions. With the right attire and a dash of
light makeup (really?), here is how I looked:

Day 1

Day 2

Sunset at Tapi

On the insistence of my dear mother,
we stepped into the ‘other’ Surat, which is raved and praised by the locals. Tapi
Nadi (river) area is where once, many years ago, we holidayed and enjoyed the
view of the gushing waters. Now, many years later, when we revisited the site,
the river water had receded exceptionally.

However, the sunset
by the nadi was still breathtaking.

Birds
camp on the exposed river bed

We walked across the waterfront bridge, which is some sort
of a heritage structure. Close by, there are beautifully architectured
bungalows, old Churches and other interesting finds. Unfortunately, we were
short on time and had to rush back to the bazaar.

It was interesting to note that rickshaws stopped plying in
certain areas, every evening between 5-7 pm in order to give an impetus to the newly
launched state bus services. We hopped on to one of those and, I must admit, it
was a cozy ride. Announcements for the next stop were made in English, Hindi and
Gujarati (reminding me of the Mumbai local), doors were wide and seats were
new and untorn. The state bus service thus got a stamp of approval from me!

Humour ‘round every
corner

Gujjus are loved for their humour, and rightly so! Gujjus
are not afraid of their quirkiness; rather they proudly wear it on their
sleeves and flaunt it. The gujju philosophy is simple: life is short, so live,
laugh & eat to your heart’s content.

This brings us to exploring (read: bumping in to) Surat’s
street food humour…

Mention, Mansion??

RIP: Rickshaw

Presenting
Hajoori’s Kitchen

Cause Bhai
sells everything, everywhere

Bade
Miyan toh Bade Miyan, Chhote Miyan Subhan Allah

With
3 more spices, this is a major competition for 5 Spice

No
humour here, but I had to include this one, since it has become an almost extinct
feature in Mumbai…

India Post- Letter Box

Food Food

“Surat aaye aur saala sosyo nai piya, toh kya khak Surat
aaye!”

Inspired from a very uninspiring movie- Mere Brother Ki
Dulhan- the above dialogue pretty much sums up the sentiment of every Surti. Sosyo,
which is now also available in other parts of India, was once a local specialty.
To quote Wikipedia, “Mohsin Hajoori introduced
Sosyo in 1927 inSurat, as an Indian option to the
UK drinkVimto”.

Cheers
to Sosyo and Sip!

Surat is also famous for its nashta
(snacks), which include sev khamani, khaman, locho, khandvi, dhokla, patra,
etc. We were fortunate to taste an assortment of all these for breakfast,
organized by the wedding host family.

Towards the end of our trip,
honestly, right before we entered Surat station to depart, we tasted the
American thick shakes of Bismillah hotel. Now, we had heard a great review of
the food and the shakes from my cousin, who was also a wedding invitee. Following his
recommendation, my parents and I decided to give Bismillah a shot.. umm..a
shake.

Bismillah, located right opposite
the station, turned out to be a relatively large space, with a section for
restaurant, another section for juices and the final section for miscellaneous
stuff like thick shake, falooda, ice cream and coco.

We
ordered the shakes of our choice (you’re really not interested in the flavours
we picked) and surely each one of those lived up to our expectation. The shakes were so
thick that we thought it best to discard the fat straws, and instead chose (wisely) to drink
straight from the glass.

Long story short

Surat welcomed me with open arms
and I ran straight into them. After this eventful trip, I don’t feel the need to pick Mumbai over Surat
or Surat over Mumbai. I pick both- for their craziness, social ‘life’, people,
pace. They’re both different, but they’re both fun!

To conclude (and while I could have found
something more apt), I choose the below image:

Friday, January 27, 2017

Think of the word exercise for a moment. What other words
would you associate with it? Sweat, gym, workout, burnout, and what not. Do you
notice how, by and large, we associate a negative sentiment to it?

Why don’t we most of us associate more positive words such
as flexibility, strength, rejuvenation, me-time, etc. to exercising?

Culturally, we have had very limited exposure and
encouragement to exercise and even play sports. These are considered as
“extra-curricular” and therefore, by consequence, less important and optional
activities.

Earlier, I too had a negative and dispassionate approach
towards exercising. It was my health-conscious sister, who initiated me to the
gym, then to yoga and other forms of exercises.

Prior to this, my mom had initiated both her daughters to
swimming, which is a great full-body workout, apart from being a fun-filled
leisure activity.

These were my early experiences with exercising, and
frankly, they weren’t even a little bit antagonizing.

We often stop ourselves before taking the first step on the
treadmill, doing the first ab crunch, making the first lap in the pool,
attending the first aerobic or zumba class, trying the first complicated yoga
posture, and so on.

If structured exercising isn’t the thing for you, there are
many ways in which you can exercise ad hoc. Given my work schedule, which keeps
me busy from Mon-Fri, I have resorted to such an ad hoc exercising format.

These include brisk walking, skipping, doing squats and
lunges, floor and stretching exercises. I am even contemplating purchasing a
bicycle, since cycling is a wonderful way to exercise one’s lower body.
Possessing a cycle, versus using the gym cycle, is an advantage since you can
travel to different places and combine exercise with pleasure.

Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

The basic principle of exercising is really very simple- get
up and move; sometimes it’s even sit down and move or better still, lie down
and move!

You can make exercising more fun by adding your favourite
music tracks, the way it’s done in most gymnasiums. And yes, you CAN exercise
at home if you’re committed to it and you truly enjoy the experience.

I hope that more and more people take to exercising and feel
the exhilaration of going that extra mile. E.g. the sense of achievement one
feels when she/he progresses from lifting 1.5 Kg of dumbbells to 2.5 Kg.

Girls and guys, give exercising a fair chance, irrespective
of your age too. Choose a form of exercise which appeals to you the most. Start
with Youtube exercise videos for beginners and keep building up from there.

You don’t need to set aside hours for exercise; a few
minutes of high-intensity workout can be equally satisfying and productive for
you.

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Umpteen unsaid words aside
Battles of feelings and logic beside
Many abuses arise and subside
But why still do I feel hollow inside?

Sights, sounds and senses around
To work, play and parties I'm bound
Am I really the square peg in a hole that's round?
Why do I feel in emotional hollowness I'm drowned?

Something mystic is concealed deep within
I can't put a finger to it, it's hiding in a ditch
If these are demons put to rest
Why doesn't the world let them be? Isn't that the best?

My hollowness can be filled with nothing but love
True love that's pure just like a white dove
A minor slip up or friction of ideas so simply turns a friend to stranger
To reveal your emptiness to every other, isn't it a real danger?

For he who knows, doesn't question
And he who questions, doesn't know
That time heals wounds and time builds people
And slowly but surely the hollowness of your soul becomes nothing more thaṅ an apparition!

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

It
was a rather unusually breezy morning in the summer of 2024 when I got the most
enchanting ‘out of world’ experience as the communications manager of ISRO
(Indian Space Research Organisation). Yes, ISRO shifted to a manmade island in
the Arabian Sea, off the shores of Mumbai, to facilitate a space launch; NASA,
we are catching up!

As
I took the last sip of coffee (and flung the disposable plastic cup in an
almost full trash can) at my work pad after a tiring night shift before logging
out of my employee online muster, when a weirdest piece of communication flashed
my Mac. Lo and behold! an invitation to visit Mars!

Was
it a joke? Was I dreaming? In the meantime, a zorb descended from the sky and
landed near the coast. Another email quickly followed. The message read “Get
into the zorb earthling ;)”. I was puzzled. “Should report this to my boss?” I
thought out loud. But not wanting to look like a fool, I quickly rushed out of
the office and got into the zorb. The zorb shot up and within seconds I was in
the dark vastness of the space.

Photo Credit: www.huffingtonpost.com

I
was very excited to see the earth from outer space. I spotted many satellites and
wondered how many of them were of Indian make. But the excitement soon ceased.
I was reminded of movies like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Gravity, as my fears
got the better of me.

A
few hours later, I descended on Mars and was greeted by a warm… Wait! ... Earthling.
The only oddity however was her attire, made of metal and wires. She introduced
herself as Nivedita and explained she was one of the thousand people who booked
a one way ticket to the red planet. While I was recuperating from my
astonishment, my iphone buzzed with an email notification. I exclaimed, “You
have wifi on Mars?” Nivedita’s eyes dilated as she explained how wifi on Mars
worked. Unlike Earthlings who exploited Space for internet connectivity, Marsians
innovated wifi through the ground. I retorted saying, “There is no way you
could reach me on Earth through ground wifi.” She admitted using Earth
satellites to reach me, “but just this one time!” she begged.

She
quickly asked me if I had an iphone. With hubris, I nodded; but Nivedita seemed
unimpressed. She pulled out a rectangular sheer glass with virtual buttons on
them, calling it the Uphone. “The Uphone?”, I quized! Nivedita smiled and said that the
early earthling-turned-marsians were in the mood for fun. Being aware of the
rave that the iphone had created, they decided to name their Mars mobiles ‘Uphone’.
It had sophisticated technology and better disposability than any electronic
item on earth. I was oddly impressed.

“Does
this location where we’re standing have a name?” I quizzed. Nivedita muttered
something like X10PYE360. I was disturbed and excited in equal parts. I wanted
to know more about this mysterious planet.

Soon
I saw a flying carpet approaching us. I smirked and said, “Aren’t magic carpets
a thing of the past?” Nivedita very politely explained that when she first
landed on Mars, she noticed how pure the air smelled. She and the others
decided that they wouldn’t do anything to pollute the air, water or land.
“Flying carpets don’t pollute the air the way your automobiles do.” She added,
“I feel pity for you earthlings when you’ll also pollute water. Your blue
planet has an abundance of water, which you must preserve. Our red planet only
has enough water to sustain the thousand odd people who live here.” There was
truth in what she said. As I mounted on the flying carpet, I thought ‘could the
people on Earth become as environmentally friendly as the Masians?’

Photo Credit: ballardartwalk.blogspot.com

We
zoomed past isolated land and approached a residential colony. All the houses
there were semi-circular metallic structures resembling the igloos. I quizzed
as to why the clothes and houses on Mars were made of metal? Nivedita explained
that many spaceships launched from Earth get lost in space. Some others become
defunct and remain unclaimed. At this rate, the Earthlings would single-handedly
bring doom to the Universe! That’s when the Marsians step in to reuse and
recycle this waste by turning bits of metal into clothes and homes. I started
feeling horrible for our innovations threaten the Universe.

Nivedita
slowly proposed, “why don’t you stay with us on Mars?” I contemplated for few
moments; then I exclaimed, “I love everything you do here, but I’m not the kind
of Earthling who’d settle in Mars.” Nivedita smiled and said she understood my
sentiment. Even though I had realized that the Earth is a shameless and
ruthless place, I still loved it, for whatever little beauty left in it.

She
offered to lend me the zorb to take me back to Earth. I hopped in and it took
off instantly. I waved to Nivedita till she was out of sight; and there I was
back into the darkness…

Now,
I’ve woken up at the coast of Mumbai. I’m alighting from the zorb, which will
take off in seconds. I find my way to the road, exhausted as I am after being
away from Earth for 24 hours.

Sitting
in the cab, which is driving me home, I notice the pollution around me, the
exhaust which the cab is emitting, and how peculiar that smell is. While I am
being reminded of the good work Nivedita and her people are doing in Mars, I
decide to lay back, shut my eyes and bask in the dirtiness of planet Earth.

Sunday, September 6, 2015

Fear, in psychology, is nothing more than learned behaviour. It is a result of Classical Conditioning.

Simply put, the mind develops a fear of certain things when it is cautioned against an object or event or is a result of a previous unpleasant personal experience.

A little girl named Suzy has recently started attending school. She is escorted daily to her designated Bus Stop by her father John. Suzy knows a mom n pop store nearby and insists that John buys her a Lolly. John complies once or twice but soon realizes that Suzy is making a habit of the Lollies.

He observes a watchdog at the entrance of the store. To discourage Suzy's incessant requests for the Lollies, John relates a fictitious story to her about the watchdog who likes Lollies so much that he bites every little child who walks out of the store with one.

Suzy makes feeble attempts to convince John to take her to the store. But each time she insists, the story of the watchdog is repeated. And voila! Suzy soon stops pleading for the Lollies.

In the coming years, she outgrows the phase of believing in stories but she may not unlearn the fear of dogs that John imbibed in her.

All individuals have such minor and multiple fears, which is completely normal.

One of the definitions of fear states, 'it is a vital response to physical and emotional danger. If we didn't feel it,we wouldn't protect ourselves from legitimate threats. However, more often than not, the things we fear are not legitimate, and they are far from “life or death” scenarios.'

In a macro sense of the term 'fear', families fear loss of love, societies fear adulteration of their values, economies fear bankruptcy whereas as people (in most cases) fear God.

Striking the right balance and regulating fears is the most challenging part. Most people never try or have little success in channelizing their fears into something constructive.

For these masses, who struggle daily with their hidden and manifested fears, learn first to Love It, then Live It and finally Leave It!